The main legal point established in the judgment is that the word 'resides' in Section 126 of Cr.P.C. cannot be equated with places where flying visits are made, and a casual stay or a flying visit to a particular place cannot confer jurisdiction to a court under Section 125 of Cr.P.C.

JUDGMENT

1. This revision under Sections 397, 401 of Cr.P.C. has been filed against the order dated 25/10/2021 passed by the Additional Judge to the Court of Principal Judge, Family Court, Gwalior in case No.234/2019 (new no.367/2021), by which the application filed by the applicant under Order VII Rule 11 CPC read with Section 126 of Cr.P.C. has been dismissed.

2. Since the controversy revolves in a very narrow compass, therefore, it is not necessary to mention the facts of the case in detail except that the applicant and respondent no.1 are the husband and wife, whereas respondent no.2 is the daughter of applicant. The respondents have filed an application under Section 125 of Cr.P.C. before the Court of Principal Judge, Family Court, Gwalior. The applicant filed an application under Order VII Rule 11 CPC read with Section 126 of Cr.P.C. on the ground that the marriage of the applicant with respondent no.1 was performed on 29/11/2019 at Bhopal and they had resided at Bhopal for the last time as husband and wife. The respondent no.1 is a working woman and is residing in Delhi alongwith respondent no.2 and with a solitary intention to give jurisdiction to the Family Court, Gwalior, she has given the address of her parental home, whereas she is working in Airport Authority of India and the respondent no.2 is also studying in Delhi. Thus, it was stated that as the Family Court, Gwalior has no jurisdiction to entertain application under Section 125 of Cr.P.C., therefore, the application filed by the respondents under Section 125 of Cr.P.C. is liable to be dismissed being without jurisdiction. It was also mentioned that in a petition under Section 9 of the Hindu Marriage Act the respondent no.1 had filed her reply, in which she had disclosed her address as 'House No.159, DDA Flats, Pocket-2, Sector-9, Delhi' and new address 805, Aero View Heights Apartment, Flat No.3-B, Dwarka, Sector-22, Near Metro Station, Delhi' and she has also mentioned that she is working as ATC in Airport Authority of India. In her application filed under Section 24 of the Hindu Marriage Act she has also disclosed the fact that she is working in Indira Gandhi International Airport on the post of ATC and is residing in Delhi and accordingly, it was prayed that this Court has no jurisdiction to entertain the application filed under Section 125 of Cr.P.C.

3. The respondents filed their reply and stated that the respondent no.1 resided with the applicant till 2014 and thereafter, she came back to her parental home. The respondent no.1 is merely serving at Delhi and it is not her permanent address. The permanent address of the respondent no.1 is Gwalior. It was further stated that the respondent no.1 is already in job much prior to her marriage. Her first posting was in Calcutta in the year 2010 and from the year 2011 she is posted in Delhi and after she was deserted in the year 2014, she is residing in her parental home in Gwalior and attends her job at Delhi. Thus, the contention of the respondent no.1 was that her permanent address is at Gwalior and, therefore, the Family Court, Gwalior has a territorial jurisdiction to decide the application.

4. The Trial Court by the impugned order dated 25/10/2021 has rejected the application merely on the ground that the parental home of the respondent no.1 is at Gwalior and her permanent address is at Gwalior.

5. Challenging the order passed by the Court below, it is submitted by the counsel for the applicant that Section 126 of Cr.P.C. governs the jurisdiction of the Trial Court. It is further submitted that the respondent no.1 herself has admitted that she was already in job much prior to her marriage and from the year 2011 she is posted in Delhi.

6. Per contra, it is submitted by the counsel for the respondents that since the permanent address of the respondent no.1 is at Gwalior and she occasionally visits her parental home, therefore, the Family Court at Gwalior has a jurisdiction to entertain the application filed under